Dusky Electronics Hypatia

The Hypatia is a fantastically versatile fuzz/overdrive/distortion pedal.

The basic elements are: a wide gain range, an adjustable low end, a specially designed input buffer, and a MOSFET-based output buffer. The gain range spans from ragged crunch to blown out, bludgeoning fuzz—all while remaining musical. The low end can be tailored for any instrument across a range of musical styles, from doom metal to classic rock to noise rock.

A specially designed input buffer preserves the resonant filter effect of coupling passive magnetic effects directly to a low-impedance transistor input stage, while still presenting a modern, high impedance at its input. Which means the Hypatia will sound great wherever it is placed in your signal chain.

To round things out, a MOSFET-based output buffer (lifted almost verbatim from the Mandorla), provides enough output volume to get even-more drive straight from your amp, as well as impart some amp-like flavor of its own—which complements the ragged, transistor-y core of the Hypatia perfectly.

Controls
The Meat, Heat, and Light knobs are all very interactive, with the range and response of one being dramatically altered by the settings of the other two. We suggest starting with everything all the way up, then slowly bringing things back down to find the sound you’re going for.
The Meat knob controls low-end content. With the knob all the way up, the sound is bassy and blown out, almost like a square wave on a synth—especially with the Heat knob at maximum, as well. Rolling back the Meat control allows mid-range and treble to come through more clearly and revoices the circuit for a more cutting sound.

The Heat knob controls overall gain and can take Hypatia from singing, sustaining fuzz and distortion at one extreme to crunchy, textured overdrive, as it’s rolled back.

The Light knob controls the amount of treble in the circuit and can be used to take the edge off of some of the otherwise harsher settings you might find.

The More knob simply controls output volume of the pedal, which is hot enough to push a tube amp into overdrive, as well—if that’s the kind of thing you’re into. That is the kind of thing you’re into, isn’t it?

Input Buffer
The combination of a passive guitar pickup plugged straight into a pedal with a low impedance transistor input forms a resonant filter–frequencies near the resonant frequency are boosted while frequencies above the resonant frequency are filtered out of the signal. This is the reason a Fuzz Face or a Rangemaster only really sounds right plugged into straight from the guitar. The Hypatia’s specially designed input buffer retains what sounds “right” about that connection without the need for the pedal to be first in your effects chain.